All user reviews for the Peavey Rock Master Tube Preamp

The Peavey Rockmaster preamp is an all tube, three channel guitar preamp. Like many other Peavey guitar amps, the channels are labeled Clean, Crunch and Ultra, and the Crunch and Ultra channels have a three band active EQ labeled Bottom, Body and Edge for the low, mid, and high frequencies. The Body knob can be pulled to shift the mid frequency higher for a more mid-scooped sound. The Crunch and Ultra channels have their own gain and level controls labeled Pre and Post. The Pre knobs can be pulled on these two channels for a gain boost. The Clean channel has its own Low, Mid, High, Presence and level controls. This preamp has an unprecedented five effects loops; one loop per channel, plus one that affects the Crunch and Ultra simultaneously, and a global loop that affects all of the channels. The Rockmaster also has both a high and a low gain input for different output pickups. There is also an XLR balanced line out on the back.

UTILIZATION

I find it very easy to dial in a good sound on the Rockmaster.

SOUNDS

I use a Gibson Les Paul Custom and run the Rockmaster into the effects return of a Peavey Classic 50 2x12 combo. I’ve tried running a Danelectro Fish n’ Chips graphic EQ in the Crunch and Ultra loops because they share an EQ, and this gave the two channels a more unique and differentiating tone. The Rockmaster is capable of sparkling cleans, mid-gain Marshall like crunch, and full on metal saturation. The key to these tones are in the push/pull gain knobs and the push/pull Body knob.

OVERALL OPINION

My favorite thing about the Rockmaster is its versatility. That, and how inexpensive they are to buy. This is my second Rockmaster. I sold the first one thinking there was something out there that would make me happier, and within weeks I regretted it. I’ll be holding on to this one for a while.

All analog tube pre-amp
Three foot switchable channels from clean to high gain
Separate effects loops for each channel plus a global loop and crunch/lead loop
1/4" connections and balanced line out

UTILIZATION

Being an analog pre-amp it is quite simple to set up. There are no digital read outs or menus to navigate through. Everything is plainly labeled and straight forward so if you have a basic understanding of EQ you will be good to go.. I bought this used without a manual but had no problem getting a good sound out of it quickly.

SOUNDS

I was really impressed by the sound of this pre-amp. I bought it on whim after hearing about it from a guitar player who was into shred and 80's style music. I thought at worst it would get me some decent high gain to get me by until I could afford something a bit more modern. I ran it with a peavey 50/50 power amp into a carvin legacy cab and it easily got a modern metal sound. This box has a lot of meat to it when dialed in properly and even running into the el84 based power amp I could still get close to the sound of a 5150. The clean channel is also good and for me was actually much better sounding than peavey's other high gain amps I have tried.

You get a lot of EQ options with the resonance and shift knobs plus having all the effects loop options makes it easy to stick outboard units in the seperate channels for further tone shaping. I ran a furman PQ3 in the lead channel effects loop and a light reverb in the clean channel's loop.

OVERALL OPINION

If you are looking for a simple to use pre-amp with a wide variety of sounds check this out before dropping tons of money on the more expensive brands. I think peavey over-all is an underrated company and their stuff is built tough. Sure there are some better units out there but they are sometimes double the price for a 10% difference in tone. I have moved on to a different set up but still keep the rock-master around just in case.

The only issue I ever had with this unit is the effects loops would sometimes stick open when not used. When this happens it's like having a bad cable between the channel and the output so you lose a lot of signal. It's an easy fix by just working a cable in and out a few times to get the contact going again. You can also just leave a 1/4" cable in each of the unused loops to avoid the problem all together.

The Rockmaster is an interesting preamp that Peavey introduced. It features three channels with some ridiculous amounts of gain. If I recall correctly, the preamp is actually somewhat similar to the XXX and JSX. One big issue is that it did not have MIDI. This generally caused it to be overlooked in the preamp world.

UTILIZATION

A big problem with the Rockmaster is that the solder joints tend to go flaky and cause the unit to die. There are guys out there who can fix this, but it can be a real hassle. It's also a fairly common issue, so reliability on the unit is questionable. You also cannot switch channels without a footswitch, so if someone forgot to include the footswitch, you have to be clever when it comes to switching channels. The unit also tends to lose knobs. The manual can be very hard to find, but it's not exactly necessary for this device.

SOUNDS

Sound wise, this thing is very heavy. It has tons of gain on tap, and it can does awesome in a metal band situation. Pair it with the right power amp, and the thing will start to roar. The cleans aren't too bad, and even mid gain tones are pretty good. The controls are fairly sensitive, so it's worth taking a few minutes to really mess with the unit.

OVERALL OPINION

Despite its reliability issues, the preamp sounds quite nice when it's working. If you're in the market for one, check to see if it has had the solder joints touched up. If it hasn't and the unit sounds somewhat flaky, I would recommend contacting Jerry @ FJA Mods. He knows the issue well and can fix it right up for you. I just wish the unit had MIDI. The lack of MIDI implementation means you'll need to buy another device to MIDI everything up in a rack, and considering how important MIDI is to racks, it's a bit of a pain.